Originally appeared on business-standard.com

Craig Fernandes / New Delhi

Brilliant is the first word that comes to mind after your first hearing of Mighty Rearranger. Much to his credit, Robert Plant has done what most erstwhile rock stars can only do in their wildest dreams.

Among other things, he’s taken a bunch of super progressive musicians who have played with the likes of trip hop outfits Massive Attack and Portishead and drum’n’bass guru Roni Size to create a colourful mosaic of eclectic rock music.

What we have with The Mighty Rearranger is a scintillating experience that can be rated on par with Plant’s lifetime of great work (even with Led Zeppelin).

It’s an adventurous album, the type that makes you feel as though it was made by a group of musicians who were put into one room and told to go absolutely berserk.

Plant’s vocal exuberance on the album is underlined by a band that has taken the time to explore the musical dynamism they contain. A strangely wonderful sensation it is.

Originally appeared in the Star Online eCentral (Malaysia)
by SUJESH PAVITHRAN

ROBERT Plant appears to have found his second wind as he inches towards the big six (he turns 57 this month). After a relatively mild decade in the 1990s, rounded up by revisiting his glory days with Jimmy Page on 1998’s Walking into Clarksdale, the former Led Zeppelin frontman decided it was time to explore new musical vistas. He returned strongly with 2001’s Dreamland, on which he trekked across some unusual terrain, while holding on to that familiar swagger. A two-CD compilation followed in late 2003, Sixty Six to Timbuktu, which allowed fans to examine Plant’s solo career, from the dreamy days of The Honeydrippers to the harder edge of the early 1990s. ||Continue reading||

Originally appeared in Billboard
by Kristina Tunzi

At 56, Robert Plant is no less the golden god that he was in Led Zeppelin. Current CD “Mighty Rearranger” demonstrates that he remains possessed by a pure rock’n'roll soul, and is as innovative and vital as ever. On second single “All the Kings Horses,” Plant and his band the Strange Sensation trade in the heavy guitars and drums for a more intimate, somber ballad on which Plant promises to be our “soldier of love.” This lovely, otherworldly tune may not achieve the same chart status as previous singles but it is certainly a treasure for fans. ||Continue reading||

Originally appeared at puremusic.com
by Michael Ross

What is Robert Plant doing among all these struggling indie artists? Doesn’t he have gobs of money, legions of publicists at his disposal, and access to major national press? Isn’t he already a music legend? Does he really need to take up space in one of the few outlets available to less fortunate musicians?

Well yes, yes, yes, and yes. If all you know of “Percy” is an image of a strutting young blonde rock god wailing the blooz with Led Zeppelin then well might you wonder where he fits in the Puremusic pantheon? But if you have followed his post-Zep work with half the diligence that, say, I have, then you will be nodding, “Yeah, I get it.” ||Continue reading||

Originally published in New York Daily News
by Jim Farber

The “Live 8″ concert - Bob Geldof’s all-star pile-on which doubles as a 20th anniversary party for “Live Aid” - won’t take place until next month.

But the event already has a soundtrack. Robert Plant’s latest album (to be showcased tonight and tomorrow in performances at the Beacon) presents the perfect “Live 8″-style handshake between the rich nations of the west and poor ones spanning lower Africa and the Sahara. ||Continue reading||

Originally published in Clash magazine (UK)

After the success of 2002’s cover project, “Dreamland,” Robert and his band have taken the African ingredients that flavoured it so ravishingly and created a brand new recipe all of their own. Their compelling amalgamation of those foreign qualities with the familiar rock ‘n’ blues howl of those well versed in the ways of a guitar makes for a thrilling trip. Effortlessly contrasting the riotous Zepisms of “Freedom Fries” with the delicate acoustic beauty of “All the King’s Horses,” Plant proves that time hasn’t diminished his ability to excite. The impressive skills of guitarist Justin Adams dominates most tracks, his intuitive playing is full of eastern promise. His tasty blues licks carry the title track while Robert lets his lungs explode like only he can towards an electrifying climax. “Mighty Rearranger” is testimony to Plant’s enduring talent; it’s fresh, exhilarating and unquestionably mighty

Originally published on jambase.com
by Dennis Cook

Not so much a return to form as a full-blown reawakening. The muses that inspired his decade-plus run of brilliance with Led Zeppelin appear to be sitting on Robert Plant’s shoulder again. Like many, I was ready to write off the be-curled golden god, but the proof of his vibrancy is here song after song. ||Continue reading||

Originally published in Afropop Worldwide
by Banning Eyre

Robert Plant stands apart from other pop and rock icons who seem to have reinvented themselves years later with world music overtones. Partly, that’s because there really has been no reinvention here. From the earliest days of Led Zeppelin, Plant sensed a connection between the roots blues he grew up loving and the desert music of north and west Africa, and that awareness was always there, lurking just beyond the obvious, a distinct ingredient in Zeppelin’s mystic magic. Now, when Plant’s band The Strange Sensation rock out on a Songhai takamba rhythm, the connection is more obvious, but perfectly continuous with the past–on the one hand, a fresh take on African desert groove music meets good ol’ rock ‘n roll, and on the other hand, the Robert Plant we’ve always known, just being himself.  ||Continue reading||

Originally Published in Indy London
Review: Jack Foley

FORMER Led Zeppelin supremo, Robert Plant, proves he has lost none of his zest for exploring world music with his latest solo album, Mighty Rearranger, a mighty guitar-driven epic that continually impresses. ||Continue reading||

Originally published on vintagerock.com

Even as he attempts to shake off a monolithic past, Robert Plant allows the proverbial monkey on his back to make an appearance now and then. At least that’s the general impression attached to his new CD Mighty Rearranger. A thoroughly solid effort, here’s a record that offers its own distinctive dose of drama and dynamics, yet is moderately embellished with shades and strokes of retro-like Zeppelinisms. Accompanied by the Strange Sensation, whose playful interaction so masterfully shaped 2002’s Dreamland into a rootsy, organic delight – Plant blasts through a repertoire supercharged with optimism, vibrancy and plenty of chops. It starts out innocently as the North African backbeat and staccato guitar on “Another Tribe” sets the stage. From there, the levee breaks wide open for the first single, “Shine It All Around.” Once Plant declares, “These are the times of my life/Bright and strong and golden,” it’s a sure sign of things to come. So he fires away with “Freedom Fries” and “Tin Pan Valley,” two prime-time hip shakers guaranteed to make Jimmy Page blush. Actually, it almost sounds as if Page is playing on “All The Kings Horses,” a soothing acoustic piece that, in spots, sounds eerily familiar (which has nothing to do with the fact that 20 years ago, Page’s band the Firm recorded another song entitled “All The King’s Horses”). ||Continue reading||